Police: Woman snatched newborn after lying about pregnancy

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Police: Woman snatched newborn after lying about pregnancy

Police in Southern California say the woman who tried stealing a newborn baby from a hospital had been faking a pregnancy with her estranged husband.

It all unfolded Monday, when police say Grisel Ramirez walked into a medical center wearing hospital scrubs, saying she was there to visit a patient. But she allegedly took a baby girl from the hospital and hid her in a tote bag.

Police say Ramirez’s husband had no clue she had been lying and is devastated. They had been separated for months and when the child was supposed to be born, he asked to meet the baby girl. That’s when, police say, Ramirez tried to kidnap the baby.

The baby wasn’t harmed during the time she was in the tote and was returned to her mother.

Police say Ramirez, a waitress, may have also approached several expectant moms and asked about their due dates at a separate hospital just weeks before this incident. One woman grew suspicious of the questions and told staff at Western Medical Center-Anaheim.

Ramirez, 48, is being held without bail. The Orange County district attorney’s office says she will be arraigned Wednesday afternoon.